Bill and Sue-On Hillman: A 50-Year Travel Odyssey

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HILLMAN INDONESIA ADVENTURE
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16. Traditional Village Visit
Huta Siallagan

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Our transport to the village ~ As much as Bill would have liked, we were not allowed to drive this conveyance ourselves.

Overlooking Toba Lake Toward the Rim of the Crater

THE TRADITIONAL BATAK VILLAGE


The houses are lived in by families of the "king" of the clan.


An interesting place to visit in the centre of Huta Siallagan features two sets of large stones carved into chairs encircling a stone table. This set of 200-year-old artifacts is called Batu Parsidangan, meaning “Stones for Meetings and Trials.” It is located under a Hariara Tree, which is considered a sacred tree by the Bataks. 

There are two sets of Batu Parsidangan. One is used to serve as the official meeting place for the king, the queen, clan elders, neighboring huta leaders, invitees, and the datu or spiritual leaders. The second set served as the site for executions.

The first set of Batu Parsidangan that was the official place for meetings consists of orderly arranged stone chairs for those events. While the second Batu Parsidangan set features a similar circle of stone chairs, but with the addition of a large stone table where executions took place.

Batu Parsidangan and Huta Siallagan stand as a legacy of those ancient times. During our visit we learned of the culture and beliefs of the ancestors of the Batak ethnic group of North Sumatra.


 


Shaman's tools: The tablet is very long - 12 months, 30 days in each month. It is filled with symbols.
 He uses a special calendar, then refers to a long tablet, to choose special days, whether it was for a beheading or marriage
Explaining the use of the shaman stick. It is a call to meeting, festivities.
The guide was quite a comedian
This local guide, is the 17th "king".
He's explaining how they used to behead criminals.
Once the head is cut off, the heart, liver, pieces are offered to anyone who wants to eat it.
In the past, once a person is deemed a criminal of a serious crime, he is jailed, no longer human.
The body may be eaten because it is now an animal; thus, animism.

Possibly a place of worship after Christians reached Indonesia and the villages.
Entering traditional Bolon and Sopo houses
which are traditional houses of the Batak ethnic group of North Sumatra.

Bill exploring ~ This is a replica of the original house,
which would be four times the size. Inside there are cooking utensils, special scarves, etc.
Interesting to hear about the "death shroud". It can range from black,
which is for someone who never married and had no children.
A little black indicates that he was married.
The next with very little black would be for someone who had grandchildren.
And finally, the colourful one would be for someone
who had great grandchildren, made a fortune and was known to others.

Holes for urination and ventilation

Exit Through the Market



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Hillman Travel Adventures
Bill and Sue-On Hillman